"Typical Democratic Political Malpractice"? not

Digby was brilliant today:

http://digbysblog.blogspot.com/2007/08/intent-here-was-pure-by-digby-jonathan.html

I'd never heard the phrase "political malpractice" before, but beyond that, I'm also wrestling with the (largely unacknowledged) enormity of the Congressional sell-out with respect to Bush's domestic spying program, and I think she has some very insightful observations...

"The idea of being called soft on terrorism if they failed to pass the bill is predictable Democratic political malpractice. But I actually became convinced that it was the other reason that motivated them: they believe the president should have these extra-constitutional powers. And that reason is the one that really scares me. A majority of our representatives apparently agree that the constitution can be set aside if they are afraid of something.

[...]

"The problem is that they have bought George W. Bush's authoritarian paternalistic mantra that the president's primary job is to "keep us safe."

[...]

"We were supposed to be a brave nation of hardy yeoman farmers and bourgeois businessmen --- individualists who came together when under attack to protect ourselves."

Backstory, largely unreported, is that there was some super secret intel predicting a terrorist attack on the Capitol over the summer, and this is what persuaded Congress that the rape of the Constitution was so urgent.

Meanwhile, I ain't scared of no terrorists, and I'm tired of this excuse being used to legitimize all manner of cons and cowardice.

Marc